High School Reunion

This weekend my High School class is holding a reunion in Quincy, Massachusetts. I will not be attending, but have already contacted someone on the list who has promised to be my eyes and ears at this event [thanks, Heather!]

Thanksgiving is only 2 days away - and this year, I am thankful to Sharon and my other classmates who have taken time from their busy lives to create our class website and organize the reunion! Every new contact I make with an old friend is like receiving a new gift. And you can never have too many of those!

Sampling a little Tater Salad on Saturday Night...

This Saturday, I'm off to enjoy the comedic antics of Ron "Tater Salad" White with my friend and neighbor, Carrie. She picked up the tickets as a surprise to me, since we've both chuckled every time we've seen a taped show with Ron White in it. I realize his unique brand of humor may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I do find him funny. We normally catch shows at the Tempe Improv but this Saturday's show is in the Dodge Theater, a much larger forum. I need to pack a few tissues, since I expect to laugh so hard I'll cry! Will let you know what I think of this show! Let's hope Tater's on his game...

The Holidays are Coming...

Another festive holiday season is upon us. 20 years ago, I would have ordered custom printed holiday cards and spent hours working on my holiday card mailing list, writing out individual messages to friends and family. The year I moved to Arizona, I created my own season's greeting combination here's-my-new-address cards and mailed them out. That was 6 years ago and probably the last year I truly put any serious effort into the mailing of holiday cards.

With the prices of stamps going up, pressures to be less wasteful, more "green" and the cost of buying 100 holiday cards each year, I've whittled down my list of must sends... and swapped out snail mail for email greetings to many. My holiday card selections of late, mark-downs picked up at the end of a prior season.

This year, I'm find myself totally unprepared and feeling on the fence for what to do this year.

Do I go get full-price cards, create my own cards, write a newsletter, or skip them altogether this year? And, if I decide to post holiday greetings this year, will they even be ready in time?
As Thanksgiving quickly approaches - I wish you all a wonderful holiday season filled with warm, joyful moments... and if you don't receive a personally penned note this year,

I hope you'll find it in your hearts to understand!

Happy Holidays to all!

Promises, Promises

Some days I can blog about everything that comes to mind. Other times, I find putting the things that matter most to me in my life right now hardest to put in print. Perhaps because writing them puts them out there and makes it harder for me to ignore.

I consider myself a fairly honest, straightforward person. But, the person I am most likely to dishonor is me. It's mid-November and I've made quite a few promises to myself throughout 2009 and realize I've yet to follow through completely on any of them. Sure, I have some success, but I seem to fall just short of completion. I realize my own stalling tactics are the hardest hurdles of all. So, this month, I've been working hard to address those issues, get myself back on track and accountable to myself for seeing things through.

One of my goals was to incorporate regular exercise into my day - which I've consistently achieved since early Spring. I picked up "The Automatic Diet" book by Charles Stuart Platkin a few months ago and started reading. His basic approach is to swap out unhealthy habits for healthier options until they become automatic. Walking has become part of my daily routine, just like making the bed. That's not to say I wake up every morning eager to put on my sneakers! Some mornings I feel like hitting the snooze button and skipping the walk altogether - but the realization my neighbor and walking buddy will be pounding on my back door in minutes if I'm not outside prevents me from slipping back into my more sedentary ways.

Another goal is to lose weight and improve my overall health. The Automatic Diet covers this too, suggesting you create a blueprint for achieving your goals. I've worked hard on creating my short term, medium term and long term goals, yet I find myself not quite completing my game plan for how I'm going to achieve my goal. I realize by not completing this task, I'm blocking my own road to success - allowing my fear of failure to leave me in some sort of holding pattern. When discussing this with my co-worker, she simply replied - "you just need to get off your fanny and do it!".... She is right (thanks, T). I am resolved to overcoming this hurdle and hope that I will be writing an update on how far I've come since today's confession!

While I'm unburdening myself, I'll confess I still have not completed the office re-organization - another emotionally uncomfortable task I have been avoiding. Several self-imposed deadlines have passed and I've extended them so many times, I've lost count. But, again, the only way for me to enjoy the tranquil, inviting creativity space I've envisioned in the room I refer to as my home office is to get on with it. [your thoughtful suggestions and inspirational pearls of wisdom gladly accepted]

So, it is my sincere intent to work harder at keeping promises I make to myself. I want to achieve these important goals I've set for myself. I want to prove to myself that I am truly a person of my word, just not someone who's all talk. Wish me success!

Playing the hand you're dealt

So, I've been blogging alot lately about reconnecting with school mates I haven't seen in years. This week, I reached out by phone to Caroline; my best friend from 3rd grade through high school!

Caroline and I were always together. If I tallied the hours in each year from junior high school to the day I left for college, I wouldn't be surprised to find I spent more hours at Caroline's house than I did my own. Caroline and I did everything together - we both got our licenses on the same day [even though I was almost a year older than Caroline, I waited until she was old enough to apply.] We won tickets to our first concert (Elton John!) from a local radio station. We enjoyed many sleepovers in her basement - baking cookies, frosting our own hair (does anyone remember Quiet Touch?) and mooning over boys.

One summer during our teenage years, Caroline's cousin came over from England to visit. Josie was everything Caroline and I were not - a bit older, worldly, sexy and exotic. In a very homogenous town, she was different. And, she caught the attention of the boys in ways Caroline and I had never dreamed possible. I envied her. I think Caroline may have, too. We spent an entire summer in Josie's shadow. I longed to be exotic, thin, pretty with dark hair and a foreign accent. In essence, I longed to be Josie. I would have given anything to trade lives with her at that moment.

After our graduation from high school, my decision to attend college out of state changed our paths forever. Caroline stayed home and ventured into the working world, while I pursued my Bachelor of Arts degree 5 hours away. I came home for winter and summer breaks - but by then we'd both changed. We kept in touch through cards, letters and the occasional phone call - but our lack of shared experiences gave us less to bond over. My parents moved out of state during my senior year of college and I never returned to my childhood home again. Caroline eventually married and started her family. Our contact trickled down to Holiday cards with photos of her growing family and eventually even that was lost.

My conversation this week with Caroline was our first contact in years. During the call, Caroline caught me up on her life and family. I was saddened to learn her Dad had lost his life to cancer about 4 years earlier. I was shocked to hear that Caroline's cousin Josie had unexpectedly died last winter.

Learning of her death made me stop and think about envying others instead of truly appreciating the gift of my own life. If I had known as a teenager that Josie would be dead at 50, would I have been so willing to have traded places? I hope that I can remember to truly appreciate the hand I've been dealt in this life. I hope I can remember that envying someone else's perceived hand when you can't see all their cards is pointless. The hand you've been dealt may very well be just as good, or better.

Starve A Cold, Feed a Fever?

I know I'm not the only one out there who can't recall this saying properly... in fact, I still question which is it?... And, at the moment, I am suffering my way through a cold and don't much care. If I'm hungry, I eat. Even if I'm not hungry, I still might eat. I'll do just about anything to try and take my mind off how lousy I'm feeling until I'm feeling better again. I wish that there was some cure for the common cold.
Of course, when you are suffering from a cold, it's like the opening for every friend and family member to give you their tried and true methods for fighting back - suggesting you take Vitamin C, more zinc or eat chicken soup. What I have found, if you try any of their helpful suggestions to treat a cold, you're sick for about 7 days. Without doing anything, you're sick for a week.
Discovering I have a cold has also prompted people I come across to ask me, "Have you gotten a flu shot?" My answer to them is a simple "no." Nor do I intend to. Call me crazy, but I believe that the body has an inherent immune system designed to combat what ails you. That's not to say there aren't those with compromised immune systems that may require a little outside assistance now and again. I just don't think the average healthy human needs one. In fact, I also believe that surviving a cold or flu helps to build your own immunity, so you're less likely to get sick.
Have I ever suffered a bout of influenza? Sure. I got sick with flu 2 years ago and I'll admit, it was pure misery getting through it. It was also the only time I can remember since early childhood. Perhaps I've just been lucky, but I tend to believe it's more a case of a healthy immune system and a common sense approach to illness when it strikes - making sure I get enough rest, eating right and getting exercise - and trusting my body knows enough to help itself when the time comes to build that army of antibodies needed to take control back.
I've promised those who have suggested I need this flu shot a nasty wake-up call at 3am if I do come down with a bought of flu this season - because I believe they've jinxed me just bringing the subject up. I cursed myself in 2007, when I told a co-worker I almost never get sick, only to contract the flu a few days after making the fateful comment.
So, if you think you need to go out and promote the flu shot to those of us who think we're fairly adequately protected by our healthy immune systems, I want you to remember another old saying - "misery loves company"... you'll be the first person we'll seek if we get sick!

Details Not Required

This week, I reconnected with a college friend I'd lost contact with a few years after graduation. Tom was truly more like college family than college pal. Our senior year my roommate Melinda and I intentionally selected dorm rooms next to Tom and his roommate. My best description of dorm life that year was akin to Laverne & Shirley episodes. I can recall many occasions, a quick knock on my door, which would almost simultaneously open to reveal Tom (whom I'll refer to as "Lenny") and his roommate "Squiggy" stopping in to say "hi" or just to drive me crazy for a few minutes - silly moments that can still bring a smile to my face today.

Tom was known to barter Stella D'oro cookies for a strong cup of coffee during late night study sessions (I kept a rather well stocked dorm room, complete with coffee maker, hot plate, fridge & toaster oven). When we weren't busy studying (OK, I think only Tom really studied that much...), we often socialized in my room and shared lifes ups and downs together. Over time, we became more like brothers and sisters, which led to the occasional bickering and/or irritation with each other you would expect with family members living in close quarters, but I think we all enjoyed our college days thanks in great part to those close-knit bonds we created.

While alot of years have passed since we last communicated, my recent e-mails to and from Tom have been easy exchanges of everyday angst tinged with humor - just like our communications back in college - only filled now with more immediate details of our present lives. I was pleased to learn Tom is married and the proud, sleep-deprived father of 3 young children. We've shared a few updates on other mutual friends from our college days. In one of our early emails, Tom stumbled upon one one particular topic and my short response to his question was all it took for Tom to write me back the most poignant thing he's written me so far; "some things are OK to let go - door closed."

That's how you know you've re-connected with a true friend - someone who doesn't need to ask about the details - because they somehow already know what's been left unsaid. And that's the kind of friend you welcome back into your life with open heart and open arms.